The Federal Government is now leveraging artificial intelligence (AI) to identify impoverished Nigerians living in urban slums, the Minister of Humanitarian Affairs and Poverty Reduction, Nentawe Yilwatda, has said.
Speaking on Arise TV’s Prime Time on Friday, Yilwatda explained that the use of AI technology has enabled the expansion of the national social register from 13 million to 19.7 million people. Previously focused on rural communities, the register now includes vulnerable populations in urban areas.
“To assist people, you need to identify them first. That’s why we began by validating and expanding the social register,” the minister said.
He stated that President Bola Tinubu had directed the register be made more inclusive by incorporating the urban poor. As part of this effort, the government utilized satellite imagery to map urban slums, while telecom base station data was employed to identify phone numbers operating within those areas. AI tools were then deployed to verify individuals using indicators such as financial access and other socio-economic factors.
According to Yilwatda, the government aims to reach 15 million households — an estimated 75 million Nigerians — through various poverty reduction initiatives.
“Nigeria has about 43 million households. By targeting 15 million, and using an average household size of five, we estimate reaching around 75 million individuals,” he said.
